


the promise of returning

by wheatfields



Series: loving you's like coming home [3]
Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Domestic, Established Relationship, Fluff, Home, Implied Sexual Content, Long-Distance Relationship, M/M, Relationship Study, Yearning, atsumu and shinsuke coming home to each other, but only if you squint... i mean it's an obvious implication but blink and you'll miss it ig?, exchanging clothes
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-03
Updated: 2021-03-03
Packaged: 2021-03-15 19:15:29
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 850
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29441028
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/wheatfields/pseuds/wheatfields
Summary: atsumu would do anything shinsuke asks. but shinsuke never asks.(or, atsukita: a relationship study.)
Relationships: Kita Shinsuke/Miya Atsumu
Series: loving you's like coming home [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2162883
Comments: 2
Kudos: 14
Collections: Atsukita Week, Kita Ship Week 2021, Rice Quartet Week 2021





	the promise of returning

**Author's Note:**

> if this seems familiar, this was initially posted as a [threadfic](https://twitter.com/kitsumushoyo/status/1351523015243169798) on my twitter!
> 
> written for Kita Ship Week 2021 day 3: yearning, exchanging clothes + bonus prompts long distance, home; posted on ao3 for Rice Quartet Week day 3: domestic & exchanging clothes. 🏡💞 enjoy!

**opening statement:**

atsumu would do anything shinsuke asks.

historically, he has. most times not without complaint, but the bottom line is that the setter has always done what his former captain asked of him.

miss practice just this once to take care of your health. have a good meal and rest when you get home. be the next to lead the team, the next captain — but do it properly: like you, not like anyone else.

maybe it was because of his seniority, or the very way that shinsuke carried himself, but atsumu always had a deep respect for his senpai, and this was something that stuck with him as the years went by.

but a lot of things have changed since high school.

for one, "kita-san" is no more. it's shinsuke now.

sometimes, it's even shin. sometimes, there are no names but babe, darlin', love. at night, there are others whispered between them, which — out of respect — cannot be disclosed. sometimes, these names aren't whispered at all.

**problem:**

atsumu would do anything shinsuke asks, but shinsuke never asks.

more things that have changed since high school: it is no longer a senpai/kouhai or captain/setter dynamic between them, they are now equals, partners;

and if their former relationship was built on association by proximity, it is now intimacy despite distance.

it's because of this that shinsuke never asks. he wouldn't dare tempt atsumu's obstinate resolve to move mountains or fold roads over each other to reach shinsuke faster — regardless of atsumu's willingness.

he never asks to lay together a bit longer before atsumu has to leave after their stolen mornings, no matter how much their bodies ache; is never the first to drop an "i want to see you" when he knows atsumu will be too tired for a video call.

as expected, shinsuke would never suggest anything that sounds like avoiding responsibilities or delaying commitments.

GOD, does atsumu want him to. but even so…

as much as atsumu wants, begs the shinsuke in his mind and heart to ask for something that would threaten to wreck his plans, he would never ask that of shinsuke either; neither of them would do anything to inconvenience the other.

both of them are well aware it isn't right to ask for things they know the other cannot provide.

shinsuke knows, though, that he doesn't need to ask.

**counterargument:**

atsumu would do anything shinsuke asks, but shinsuke never asks. still, atsumu will give what he can anyway, and it always feels like a promise.

it is.

for all of his brashness, atsumu is one of the most considerate and dedicated people shinsuke has ever met, on or off the court.

atsumu is also so much more perceptive and subtle than people give him credit for.

he always leaves something of his at shinsuke's after he stays the night, even after claiming he has packed everything he needs. sometimes it's a shirt, a sweater, a jacket, a scarf — it's so deliberate, he probably packed an extra piece just so it could stay behind.

and it's never just leaving something; he also takes a similar item of shinsuke's "on accident", with the promise of returning it.

the promise of returning.

there are times when they don't know how much sooner or later their next time will be, or how much shorter or longer the waiting time will feel despite the actual duration.

atsumu knows that shinsuke has figured out his scheme by now, but neither of them have addressed it.

why would they, when they wear their traded clothes while apart; a substitute for the warmth they cannot yet relish in, a reminder that something from yesterday brings a hope for tomorrow?

after all: for them, every parting is a promise of tomorrow, and tomorrow, and tomorrow.

**resolution:**

atsumu would do anything shinsuke asks, but shinsuke never asks. still, atsumu will give what he can anyway, and it always feels like a promise. shinsuke knows that there has never been a promise that atsumu could not keep.

shinsuke does not have any grandchildren (or even children) yet, but so far he has had the privilege of talking about how amazing his teammates are, again and again, by no lack of effort coming from the blond setter.

atsumu has the privilege to be on the receiving end of shinsuke's smile, a special one reserved just for him, and of shinsuke's sincerest "i'm so proud of you" delivered in a text, a phone call, a video, and in person.

but more than anything, shinsuke has the privilege of leaving the porch light on outside, knowing atsumu will come home to him, shut the light, close the curtains, and scoop shinsuke in his arms when he settles into bed next to him before the dawn.

and atsumu has the privilege to have shinsuke as his person to come home to; to hold and kiss at night with only names and promises between them, and in the morning when the golden light pours in over them, reflecting the warmth of the smiles they save only for each other.


End file.
